The Eclectic Evangelical-Arlene Bridges Samuels : 2020-05-24

When I grew up in the 50s and 60s, change didn’t seem as “changeable.” Most of our parents remained married and stayed at the same job. School began after Labor Day. In the south, grocery stores closed on Sundays. We attended the same church year after year. We watched only three TV channels that shut down at midnight playing the National Anthem. Continuity reigned and with it, a sense of security.

In the last few decades though, change seems to dominate everything every minute. Today’s speed of change is sometimes dizzying. Those days of less change have slipped into the history books of our lives if we are old enough to remember.

Changes reflect both joy and sadness. Joy...encountering our Lord transforming our lives. Meeting the love of our life, changing from single to married. Children coming along changing us into parents. Accepting a dream job that changes our lifestyle. And sadness...divorce, accidents, ill health, addictions, financial loss, betrayals, or the passing of a loved one.

With news now changing even more in this season of a Covid-19 culture, our lives are invaded with anxiety and fear about the future. Without question though, we CAN count on two “unchangeables.”

First, relying on the words of the most profound and popular book in history assures us of inner security and rays of hope. James 1:17 reminds us, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.” Hebrews 13:8 carries the same theme, "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” And Isaiah 40:8 offers us this truth, “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.”

Secondly, while we learn about our Lord in scripture and His eternal Presence, we also prove and embrace biblical truths in a deeper, personal way when we choose to walk in the ways of Jesus with the necessary and enabling help of His Holy Spirit.

Our Father of lights doesn’t change. The word of God is forever. Jesus is the same every day. Count On Who Never Changes!

“A bend in the road is not the end of the road…unless you fail to make the turn.”

― Helen Keller

A Tapestry of Churches

A splendid tapestry of churches has ripened my faith with fruit from many good trees; as a missionary with Mercy Ships in a crew I describe as a "Christian United Nations," and also living in Switzerland and Romania-plus moving around the United States.

Growing up, my Southern Baptist church laid my foundation built with singing the great hymns of the church, where to locate books of the Bible, and scripture memory. Through my youth group, I encountered the Lord in a personal way on July 31, 1963.

Presbyterians fed me at a buffet of Protestant theologians especially my favorite one, Dietrich Bonhoeffer and emphasized God’s sovereignty.

In The Episcopal Church, I waded into two different streams, one liturgical and the other charismatic. In the liturgical "high" Episcopal church, I feasted at the Eucharist each week and navigated the ups and downs of kneeling. In the charismatic Episcopal church, I connected more deeply with the Holy Spirit, finding freedom to raise my hands in joyful worship. As a member of a black church on then-small Hilton Head Island, the pastor and choir fed me with vibrant songs and eloquent sermons.

Living in Switzerland, we enjoyed worshipping with other ex-pats in the Church of Scotland. During our eight years with Mercy Ships, the world's largest private Christian hospital ship, we sailed the seas with a crew from 35 nations-among them South Sea Islanders who introduced us to their lovely, worshipful dances. On the mission field living in Romania, my senses delighted in the Romanian Orthodox Church replete with incense and gilded, intricate altars.

In a non-denominational church with contemporary music, I engaged with believers from varied church backgrounds and joined a small group. At the Church of God, I worshipped in a Pentecostal setting in a distinctly pro-Israel denomination that displayed the American and Israeli flags. Belongling to a small Anglican church I relished liturgy, weekly Eucharist, missions outreach to Rwanda, and acoustic guitars.

Transferring from small Anglican to big Baptist, I have reconnected with my chidlhood biblical roots where I feast on hymns sung by an outstanding choir and orchestra, an excellent Sunday School class, bible-focused sermons, and a prolific domestic and international missions focus. Last but not least, the Jewish community and expert Hebraic roots teachers have opened a door of deeper understanding that Judaism nurtured Christianity in an ancient cradle rich with commandments, festivals, wisdom, poetry, patriarchs, prophets, and Older and New Testaments. Significantly, learning more about Jewish culture and Christianity's Jewish roots has deepened a richer relationship with my Savior, a Jewish Rabbi. I've received an extraordinary gift as a non-Jew grafted into the branches of the ancient Jewish tree connecting me to Israel, my spiritual homeland. .

I invite you to walk with me through a lifetime of adventures reflecting a tapestry of faith that I hope will encourage you in your journey to discover extraordinary beauty and limitless fulfillment of our Christian faith.

In Him we hope, Arlene

God Never Changes-Even in a Covid-19 Culture

Only One Name, Only One Verse